Number 99
by jojo507
Summary: Like many other 'forbidden' love stories a rogue nin and a Konoha kunoichi somehow found a spark between them. Except this starts with a very dead Deidara and a living Sakura trying to recreate him without the forbidden jutsu but with science. Cloning. Ino thought it impossible until clone #99 woke up. But is he really the Deidara everyone knows?
1. Chapter 1

What the fuck? A new story? When are you going to finish Voice of a Blossom or continue Revival's End!?

 **Yeah, I know guys. A new story when I never got to the other ones? Well, this isn't really a 'new' story, I wrote this when I had some kind of writing spree 3~4 years ago when I was in high school. I apparently wrote three chapters for this story and since I honestly have no idea when I'm ever going to continue my other stories I thought I'd give you this. I re-read it and found it pretty okay for a beginner's high school me so here you go. Enjoy.**

Chapter 1

 _"Successful cloning of an increasing number of species confirms the general impression_

 _that it would be possible to clone any mammalian species, including humans."_

 _Ian Wilmut_

It was midnight within the walls of the Hidden Leaf Village, the streets were empty except for the few adults out for a nice drink. None noticed the small fleet of masked shinobi jumping from roof to roof, nor the blond woman leading the small fleet.

 _Please, whatever god that exist out there please tell me this is all just a misunderstanding._

The fleet shot out, through the Konoha's great gates and started towards the dark forest surrounding the village. They had one purpose and one purpose only. To capture the medical kunoichi who could be possibly conducting illegal experiments in a hidden lab out in the forest.

 _Sensei….is this how you felt when you found Orochimaru, your best student, betrayed you?_

 _ **You betrayed her first.**_

The Blond woman flinched at the sudden thought.

But it wasn't really betrayal, right? Her student was doing something outrageous, something impossible, something that was never meant to happen. And it was her job as the Hokage to make a stop to her student's mistakes, right?

 _ **By breaking her heart?**_

Only a few meters ahead of the group was a normal forest wall, like every other view around them.

Genjutsu.

A man with a hawk mask ran ahead of the group and broke the genjutsu, revealing a slim opening from the supposed forest wall. The group slowed down at the mouth of the cave and cautiously entered. When they reached the end of the cave, a silver-haired nin with his own personal ANBU mask detected a hidden stairwell going underground. The six ninjas slowly entered the earth, weapons drawn, all mentally ready to witness whatever was to greet them. They entered a dark hallway, lit up by dim candles, casting ominous shadows flickering every now and then.

The leader of the group, the Hokage, marched on forwards sensing the familiar chakra up ahead at the end of the hall. There was just one door at the end and the Hokage didn't hesitate to burst it open with her heels, her group of ANBUs rushed into the room with weapons raised.

"Hello sensei."

Shock. There were no other words to describe what Tsunade and her group were feeling, just …shock.

"Sakura…what have you done?" Tsunade whispered out, her dark caramel eyes darted around the room then landed onto her pupil.

"I wanted him back. I wanted what was taken away from me…from what _you've_ taken away from me." Sakura stood with her back facing the newcomers. In front of her were lines of human-sized test tubes on both walls. Each filled with greenish-blue substance. It wasn't the substance that shocked the newcomers; it was what was in them of course.

Some had half formed human bodies, some just the inner organs of a human, some were just unrecognizable blobs, and some…full human bodies. All in all they all, looked similar to each other as if trying to create one specific person.

One specific person….and Tsunade knew who that person was…or should it be 'is'?

"Haruno Sakura you are hereby arrested for conducting experiments and research that was not reported or approved by the Hokage. We request you come peacefully—"

"into your jailhouse?" the pinkette chuckled darkly. "Shouldn't you at least hear my defense…sensei?" Sakura finally turned to face the group, a soft but tired smile gracing her lips.

Hesitating for a second, Tsunade opened her mouth, doubting for another second that she wouldn't be able to produce any words.

 _How did it come to this?_

"I don't think there is any explanation needed, this" she indicated with a nod of her head at the test tubes," explains everything already, Sakura." It took everything Tsunade had to not cry out 'why', she didn't want to lose Sakura. No, she couldn't lose anyone anymore, she was so tempted to turn and just run back home. But she couldn't, she is the Hokage, she had responsibilities and expectations to meet. So she lifted her head high and met her pupils green orbs.

 _Kami. Sakura, what did you do to yourself?_

Dark circles sagged under the pinkette's eyes, her once bright emerald eyes were dulled, her skin pale and sickly, her shoulders slumped forward. Her already petite frame looked smaller and fragile.

"They look disgusting to you, don't they? But to me…they are my hope, my light. Just hear me out please sensei? After what you took away from me, you could at least hear me out? Then you can decide, just hear me out, please." Sakura weakly begged, her eyes brimming with unshed tears.

Little did she know that she had already won her teacher's heart at the word "hope".

"Fine. Let's hear it, but in a different room, I can't hear you out right with 'him' everywhere. You have five minutes Sakura, follow me." Tsunade spun around her heels and walked back to the hallway, her green robe flying behind her.

And Sakura followed.

 **Reviews would be cool. May motivate or inspire me.**  
 **When should I upload the next chapter?**


	2. Chapter 2

The title is #99 but for some reason, fanfic won't let me add the # in the title. So...yeah.

Chapter 2: Cloning

 _The best thing about memories is making them_

Tsunade didn't know what to do. Her arms were crossed on top of her chest and her head bowed in deep thought. She was alone in her house, sitting on one of her living room couches. She had heard her student's explanation, who was then put into custody in one of the cleaner and safer prisons. Tomorrow Tsunade was to decide Sakura's fate, thank kami that Naruto was away on a mission with team Gai. Caramel eyes slid shut as the hokage thought back to what Sakura said in slight desperation.

Flashback

Tsunade stopped right outside of the cave's entrance, Sakura behind her and three ANBUs behind them, the others were searching the lab. But they were ordered not to touch anything….yet.

"Speak." The hokage demanded.

Sakura inhaled deeply and let the air out slowly.

"After that day, I preserved a tube of his blood and a few strands of his hair. I didn't really know what I was doing that time but they served as my key ingredient, the DNA source for the clones. Five days after that day, you sent me to the asylum, after all…I did try to kill myself. I just…couldn't imagine a life without him you know. I thought maybe, you would understand. But you wouldn't even tell me what happened to his body!" Sakura breathed deeply again, calming herself she wasn't planning to get so emotional. But Tsunade watched and listened with a solemn mask in place. "Anyways, I realized that I would never leave the asylum until I suck it up and get over my loss. But I couldn't do that sensei…I could never…."

Tsunade glanced down in guilt then quickly returned her gaze to her student.

"Then I got an idea, I remembered reading about clones in one of my past medical studies. A permanent one, an exact replica of a certain person's DNA. I admit I had thought about Orochimaru's forbidden jutsu of reviving the dead. But he would have just been a puppet, following my every command. I didn't want that, he was never submissive and would have hated it. But cloning is not a jutsu, its science and was only said to be immoral because the first successful clone was just a mere shell of a person. I thought and planned different ways to bring him back. Everyone was convinced I moved on and you know what happened next. I was released from the asylum and studied medical books related to cloning which brought us here."

Emerald eyes looked up to meet her sensei's eyes, both females' eyes wavered slightly.

"I never killed, kidnapped or even involved other people in order to make this project successful. I kept it a secret because I knew you wouldn't approve and would have tried to stop me. I did it all by myself shishou."

Tsunade groaned at all the intel she had received from her student. Folders with results of Sakura's experiments were scattered on the coffee table. She had read every word and information written in those papers along with some pictures taken of the subjects.

Sakura had first begun by creating a simple clone of him. As the previous experiments mentioned the clone was simply an empty shell. Sakura killed him with a painless syringe. The process of simple cloning was to grow the DNA into the original's body. Then in a few months or year, after the body was completely formed, it is released from the chemicals they were drowned in. After experimenting a bit more with the simple clones she discovered they weren't just 'empty shells', no, they were in the state of a newborn baby. As in the bodies didn't know how to walk, talk, eat, hold their bladder, read, and take care of themselves, they were clueless and lacked the experience every humans went through. It lacked the experience the original went through. Thus it was not him.

How could she bring back him as he was? Memories of these experience was essential and Sakura was stumped. There was the possibility that she could share her memories with the clone but it severely lacked the information he needed to be himself. Research after research for endless months and sleepless nights, Sakura found a strange solution that had a 35% chance of actually working. She had tried to create a clone through the process of aging. Thus he would be created as a newborn baby which would be grown faster than a normal being, evolve into _him_ as a twenty-year-old, the same age he died in. Sakura had struggled a lot in balancing the chemicals with the DNA to form the body and help it grow at a faster speed; so that she didn't have to wait twenty years for the body to fully develop. Sakura had to make sure to put her test subjects into a deep slumber in order to make them into _him_.

Before she ended the last subject of her first generation of clones, Sakura had curiously put him in an EEG test which detected brain waves and discovered the clone could dream. Which is how she thought of the second generation of clones, the ones who went through the aging process. She hypothesised that only after the body was fully formed, whether it was the body of a infant, child, or teenager, could it dream. She had made sure to have an EEG test each time the clones grew another 'year' and the results proved her theory correct. It was her first actually victory in her project, a small one but a victory noneless.

She read about theories of dreams, that one could dream after they 'lived' and experienced the world even for a few seconds. The clones never got to 'live' as they were in a unconscious state, their experiences would be from the original's memories. Thus these dreams would be memories and when they…if they woke up, _he_ would be alive. Not just an empty shell. They would actually be alive with his memories and would know how to function as a human being. Sakura's first successful subject that had woken up lasted seven hours before he exploded. It seemed that they had the original's kekkai gekkai of explosive chakra; the first test subject was too weak to control it. And the chakra went on a rampage within the body, clogging chakra lines then eventually exploding. Sakura was crushed.

But after a few days she would try again. Make them much more stable. Subject number 13 lasted ten hours then collapsed, unable to manage his breathing outside of a test tube. She made them stronger. Subject number 38's mind snapped and went into a stroke; Sakura had to end his misery. She made them mentally and physically developed. Subject number 44 committed suicide for an unknown reason, by stabbing himself with a nearby scalpel. Subject number 49 was reported aggressive. He had tried to kill her, so she snapped his neck in self-defense.

Tsunade squeezed her eyes shut, pushing back tears threatening to spill. How much had her student suffered? All alone. Why did she torture herself so? Having to kill one's beloved three times with her own hands. A sob escaped from her, and then another as tears streamed down the blond woman's cheeks.

 _Maybe if you just had let them be together….then maybe it didn't have to come to this._

There's another chapter.

Confused about the cloning part? You should be, I am too. I tried my best to find an understandable solution and this is the best I got without using a forbidden jutsu.


	3. Chapter 3

Holy shit. Thank you second guest for the review I rechecked this chapter and I have no idea what happened, those weird italics and stuff weren't there when I uploaded it. It's fixed now (I hope) and wow if anyone actually read that mess you're amazing.

This is the last pre-written chapter I have, hopefully, I can continue writing this and my other fanfics in the near future...

Chapter 3

 _"History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce."_

 _-Karl Marx-_

Unhealthy bags sagged under dark caramel eyes from the lack of sleep; Tsunade scanned all of her pupil's notes for the hundredth time. It has been four days since the hokage found out about her pupil's secret experiments to bring her beloved back. Four days since she had to lock Sakura in a cage. Sakura didn't belong in a cage, she was a Konoha kunoichi; loyal to her village and soon-to-be-chief of Konoha's hospital. She was a healer, a headstrong, smart…. **child**.

Sakura didn't belong in jail, jails are for criminals.

And today Tsunade could finally free her dearest student out of that god forsaken place. It was confirmed, after the hokage herself inspected the hidden lab cave and all the notes taken from her lost pupil. There were no illegal doings throughout the entire process. Cloning was never illegal, simply "given up" due to them being empty shells.

But after this, the blond woman swore she will make it illegal. If it ever succeeds that is, the dead should stay dead.

Heels clacked onto a clear hallway of one of the well-kept jails in the village for special 'criminals'; stopping in front of one, she opened the door without hesitation.

"Three months."

Dull emerald orbs shot up at the blond woman.

"Three months and no more. After that I will end this experiment permanently. If you cannot perfect _him_ before then, then that's it." Tsunade said. The elder woman felt a crack in her chest when she saw the soft smile gracing the pinkette's face. How long has it been since she actually seen her smile?

"His name is Deidara, sensei."

Tsunade grunted and turned towards the door. "Come on gaki before I change my mind. Let's go home."

 _His name_ _ **was**_ _Deidara._

 _And whose fault is that?_

Sakura had gotten back to her 'experiment' right away, after all, she did have a deadline now. But she was not allowed to progress alone; so Kakashi was often sent (he volunteered since he was secretly worried) to the cave to watch over and report back to Tsunade every week. The hokage had also sent a medical kunoichi to aid Sakura in the progress. She would have sent Shizune if only she didn't need her as much in the office. So instead Ino Yamanaka was informed of the situation and was sent as the pinkette's lab partner. Ino also had to send weekly reports to the hokage.

Of course, after Ino found out she bitched about it then started to yell in anger which turned into crying and hugging her best friend. Letting her friends and teachers know, Sakura had to admit that it lifted a huge weight off her shoulders.

Two and a half months later Ino started to lose hope in this 'project'. It turned out to be much more gruesome and shocking to Ino than she thought. Due to their haste and speed of progress in order to make the deadline they were able to succeed in three more Deidaras, succeeded as in they woke up. Number 58, 77, and 91. The female blond had to end one of three to save her best friend the misery from doing it herself. Again one had commit suicide and the last two aggressive; Kakashi had ended number 91's life, not wanting his student to go through the pain. Sakura was devastated but pushed on, she had two more weeks left.

Ino was scribbling down the data of stability of the tube in front of her and Sakura was doing the same next to her.

"Sakura…." Ino sighed and stopped her scribbling.

Refusing to respond, Sakura continued scribbling.

Huffing in anger, the blond turned to her lab partner.

"Sakura, we won't make it. You can't go on like this; you barely sleep, eat, or even drink! Please, listen to-!"

"INO!...Please." Pausing for a second she went back to taking notes.

"Listen to yourself Sakura! You can't put a blind eye on how this whole thing is not going to work! You don't even know why he keeps committing suicide and the violent actions! I swear Sakura, I really don't think this is possible…" Ino searched her friend's face hoping for a reaction, an emotion, a something! But the pinkette never stopped her writing, and the scratching sound of pencil on paper filled the silent lab.

Writing the last bit of data, Sakura turned away from the blond and continued to the next tube.

"Then leave."

Ino watched, eyes wide, the back of Sakura's form.

"If you really think it is not possible then leave."

Shocked, Ino watched her continue on for a minute then turned to leave the lab.

Turning back one last time to the lone figure, the Yamanaka heiress closed the door behind her.

"Goodbye."

 _I'm alone for real now aren't I?_ Sakura thought. _Deikun_ …

She choked down the tears threatening to come out. I have to be strong. _I'll fight all the way, I promise I'll bring you back._

Thump.

 _I still have two weeks._

Thump. Thump.

 _I can do this._

Thump, thump, thump, thump.

Sakura snapped out of her thoughts from the unfamiliar sound.

 _What's going on? Where is it coming from?_

"Ino? Are you here?" Sakura cautiously walked towards the door, she swore she saw her blond friend leave through. "Ino?" She called louder.

Thump, thump, thump, thump.

Sakura quickly noticed the bubbling and thrashing going on in one of the human sized tubes near the door. Quickening her pace towards it, the sight of a blond male with eyes wide open struggling about in his tube shocked her, he was awake.

He was not supposed to be awake.

Panic surged through her veins as the doctor quickly accessed the cause of his unexpected awakening and thrashing. Was he panicking? Of course, he was. His banging against the thick glass was becoming frantic but weaker. Why? Oh, that's why. The tube wire that was supposed to be connected to the contained male's belly button had fallen out. That tube was the source to help grow the body, give it proteins, food, and air.

Air, he couldn't breathe. Shit.

 _How the hell, how do I-what do I do?! This wasn't supposed to happen._ Sakura was panicking and it was really not helping the situation. _What do I do? What do I do? What do I do?_

 _Fuck it._

That was an excellent plan.

Curling her small fist, chakra surged through her as she aimed to break the glass.

"SHANARO!"

She had to hold back a little to make sure she didn't blast him as well, just enough to crack and shatter the glass down.

CRASH!

Ino was walking slowly towards the exit until she heard Sakura's famous 'shanaro' followed by the sound of shattering glass. Sprinting back towards the lab she had just exited, Ino ripped open the door and was greeted by sight of a broken tube, a naked body on the ground, and a distressed Sakura reaching for him.

Recovering from the unexpected scene of seeing one of him awake and out of his tube prison, Ino remembered the previous test subjects was ready to end its life at any moment. Her body tensed as the blond male lifted a shaking hand towards the pinkette.

Ino was thinking of the most quick and painless way to kill it. Would snapping his neck be quick enough? Or maybe hit his pressure point, knock it unconscious, then proceed to kill it with a syringe? Maybe-

"kura…S-Saku"

Maybe, she didn't have to kill him…..yet.

Both on the ground, the shivering male clutched at the pinkette's lab coat, head buried against her shoulder. Sakura was more than willing to wrap her arms around the male in a protective embrace.

And that was how Kakashi found them.

Hehe.

Naked Dei.

Reiew for naked Dei.


	4. Chapter 4

I rewrote the last half of this chapter 4 because the previous one was written out of I-don't-give-a-fuckness, writers block, and a bit of desperation. All in all it was a crappy chapter. This rewrite is a better quality crap that makes a bit more sense.

Thank you, reviewers, for informing me of the weirdness that happened in ch 3, I have no idea how it happened but its fixed now. I'll make sure to re-check my uploads in the future.

Also, dear Guest reviewer, your suggestion is very tempting but unfortunately I cannot do as you bid due to having one year left of suffering till I have my degree, it would be a waste. You reviewered for naked Dei so I thank thee.

Chapter 4

 _"Art is not only about angst."_

 _John Corigliano_

He was trapped. He knew this was going to be a trap, but here he was several feet away from the Hokage herself with Anbus surrounding him. His Akatsuki coat was disposed of a while ago in flames along with his ring. The two half-filled pouches on either side of his waist suddenly felt heavier along with the atmosphere. Why did he come here despite the fact it would mean certain death?

"Deidara!"

For her. That girl whose bright pink hair was like a beacon in the battlefield. A pink bullseye in the sea of drunken travelers in a bar. Huh. That was where he had met her without having to fight her, though he did threaten to blow up the bar if she made any unnecessary movements. She still got to punch him on his left cheekbone after five shots of alcohol. His face was swollen and purple for the next few days after that.

All for her. She had suggested finding a way to leave Akatsuki and have a place in Konoha with her several times, which he answered with a long list of reasons why it wouldn't work out. Still, she didn't give up on that dream and her hope-filled, bright emerald eyes were really hard to say no to. So they planned a way to get him out of Akatsuki alive and Sakura would talk to her shisou, the Hokage.

Tsunade was horrified. At first she thought Sakura was being manipulated and tried some release jutsu and seals on her. When she realized that her student was being serious, she tried to reason with the child but she was stubborn and swore that her boyfriend will behave. Tsunade folded her hands in front of her face with her elbows resting on the desk, she silently stayed that way for 15 minutes wracking her brain for a solution. The Hokage trusted her student but who in the right mind would allow an S-class criminal into their village as a citizen after all he has done. No one would accept him here. People will fear him. He had killed Gaara the Kazekage. He is a member of Akatsuki. And he took hundreds if not over a thousand lives with his unique ability, he should be punished and executed for all he has done. The answer should be obvious but it hurt her to betray her student.

In the end, Sakura went searching for Deidara to tell him that her shisou had listened and wanted to meet him in person outside of Konoha. Sakura was happy, Deidara was doubtful, and Tsunade called for Shikamaru to plan the trap.

So here they were with Deidara surrounded at all sides along with several more Anbus flying on black ink birds above him. Sakura was being held down by two shinobis and the Hokage was approaching the highly alert blond male.

"I didn't think you would actually come. Did you really think it would work out?" Tsunade asked.

Deidara smirked then shrugged, "No, not really. But here I am, un."

Tsunade's eyes narrowed and raised a hand,"I, as the fifth Hokage of Konoha, sentence you to death. You are too dangerous to keep alive."

"Don't think I'll go easy on you, un!"

Tsunade brought her hand down to signal the Anbus to attack and all hell broke. In the end, Deidara managed to kill a third of the party, severely injure half, and the rest was left with first to third-degree burns. A grin made away across his bruised face, a habit he noticed he did whenever he was in a pinch. The ground erupted underneath him and his injured body barely avoided being punctured by the spikes made of earth.

Deidara felt around his pouch with his one surviving arm for clay but was met with a dollop the size of a pebble. He cursed as he avoided another deadly attack and time seemed to slow down, he could almost hear Sasori telling him he should always be fully prepared. If only he was there with him at the bar he wouldn't have gotten in this mess with the pinkette, not that she isn't worth it.

It's been two years since they were going out and honestly, it was tiring him out; the secrets, the excuses, and the waiting of when they will be able to meet again. So he came here knowing it was a trap but he was tired, didn't have any other ideas, and maybe just maybe he had a tiny glimmer of hope.

"Shit!"

A fist came full contact onto his abdomen and his eyes made contact with the hokages for a split second before he hammered into the earth. He was choking on his own blood when he blinked away the black spots on the verge of passing out. What little air he got was excruciating and well fuck, looks like this was actually going to be the end.

"This is the end for you, Deidara of the Akatsuki." Tsunade stood above his body, her left fist dripping with his own blood.

Deidara glanced at where he last saw _her_ , two more shinobis and an Anbu were holding her down almost covering her small frame. Good. She'll survive the explosion with minor burns.

"I know, yeah." Deidara grinned and swallowed the last of his clay in his main mouth.

Tsunade's eyes widened, Kakashi warned her of his self destruction ability but this time it wouldn't be a dud. His body quickly bloated up as all his chakra gathered into the center of his body, with the amount of clay he swallowed, low chakra, and injured form the explosion wasn't as big as he wanted as his last masterpiece. But like hell he was going to let himself be killed in a mundane manner, an artist should go out like many others before him: suicide.

"DEIDARAA!"

Deidara had thought he lived a life doing what he wanted without regret but that voice gave him a twinge or regret….and guilt.

He should've bought her that last drink in the bar when the first met.

He should've volunteered to cook her breakfast just so she would stay with him a little longer.

He should've paid more attention when they went shopping and she asked which dress looked better.

He should've hugged her more.

Kissed her more.

Loved her more.

Sakura…

Sakura?

 **Sakura**

Number 99's eyes flashed open and in his shocked state he accidently pulled off a cord. Air, he need to breathe! AIR! Sakura! He thrashed about, banging against his glass prison in panicked confusion till there were black spots entering his vision.

" _Shanaro!"_

The glass tube shattered and number 99 was swept down along with the chemical and shattered glass. Oxygen filled his lungs for the first time and with shaking hands he reached for his savior.

"kura…S-Saku"

Warm arms wrapped around him and the familiar color of pink brushed against his face. Clutching tighter to Sakura, he felt safe and blacked out.


End file.
